[Jason]

BIMMERPOST NEWS

BMW USA Reports Best June Sales Ever - Up 24.6% in June 2013

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BMW Group U.S. Reports June 2013 Sales

BMW brand sales up 24.6 percent, best June ever
MINI brand sales up 9.6 percent, best month ever
BMW Motorcycle sales up 4.9 percent

Woodcliff Lake, NJ – July 2, 2013… The BMW Group in the U.S. (BMW and MINI combined) reported June sales of 33,645 vehicles, an increase of 21.4 percent from the 27,720 vehicles sold in the same month a year ago. Year-to-date, the BMW Group (BMW and MINI combined) is up 9.0 percent on sales of 172,787 in the first six months of 2013 compared to 158,563 in the same period in 2012.

“There is nothing like an abundance of new and popular models to drive sales, resulting in new U.S. sales records for BMW, MINI and pre-owned BMW,” said Ludwig Willisch, President and CEO, BMW of North America. “We started this year with confidence and optimism; the sales results have verified our viewpoint and we are very much looking forward to the second half with more new models on the way including the new X5.”

BMW Brand Sales
Sales of BMW brand vehicles increased 24.6 percent in June for a total of 27,074 compared to 21,725 vehicles sold in June, 2012. Year-to-date, the BMW brand is up 11.0 percent on sales of 140,431 compared to 126,504 sold in the first six months of 2012.

In June, best performing vehicles included the 3 Series, up 62.6 percent to 10,957 units; the 6 Series, up 119.5 percent to 1,409 units; the 7 Series, up 58.6 percent to 855 units and the X3 SAV, up 5.5 percent to 2,981 units.

BMW Pre-Owned Vehicles
In June, sales of BMW used vehicles (including certified pre-owned and pre-owned) increased 2.7 percent to 13,859 vehicles compared to the 13,489 vehicles sold in June, 2012. January through June, BMW used vehicle sales are up 5.2 percent on volume of 86,559 compared to 82,282 in the same period of 2012. This has been the best first six months sales result for BMW Pre-Owned, exceeding the previous record year of 2010.

MINI Brand Sales – best month ever
MINI USA reported the best month ever in June with sales of 6,571 automobiles, an increase of 9.6 percent from the 5,995 sold in the same month a year ago. Year-to-date, MINI sales in the U.S. are up 0.9 percent on volume of 32,356 compared to 32,059 in the first six months of 2012.

MINI Pre-Owned Vehicles
In June, sales of MINI used automobiles (including MINI NEXT certified pre-owned and pre-owned) increased 16.3 percent to 1,877 automobiles from the 1,614 sold in June, 2012. MINI NEXT had a strong month with 100 percent increase over June 2012, and 113.2 percent increase year-to-date. January through June, MINI used vehicle sales are up 18.5 percent on volume of 10,324 compared to 8,710 in the same period of 2012.

[Needsdecaf]

BMW's strategy is working:

Forget about enthusiasts

Soften the product to broaden appeal

Drop maintenance requirements to half of what they used to be and include them for first 50k miles, keeping lease residuals high.

Flood market with ridiculous niche products (see X4, 3GT, 5GT, 4 Gran Coupe, etc).

Bam...instant sales spike.

[300hp]

Unfortunately just reporting BMW sales does not really give the full picture. When you consider Audit sold 13 k units, about 3 k more than BMW sold 3 series, then you start to realize what's going on here.

i don't think BMW is forgetting the enthusiasts. The 135i is still around which is the exact same size as the E46. Not sure what the plan is with the coming 2 series but less weight should be an enthusiasts wet dream.

[Never Convicted]

Originally Posted by Needsdecaf

BMW's strategy is working:

Forget about enthusiasts

Soften the product to broaden appeal

Drop maintenance requirements to half of what they used to be and include them for first 50k miles, keeping lease residuals high.

Flood market with ridiculous niche products (see X4, 3GT, 5GT, 4 Gran Coupe, etc).

Bam...instant sales spike.

So instead, they should focus on 50 know-it-all self appointed pontificators on a message board and never broaden their range to meet competition. But hasn't the "instant sales spike" been going on for years now?

[JJunkins]

Originally Posted by 300hp

Unfortunately just reporting BMW sales does not really give the full picture. When you consider Audit sold 13 k units, about 3 k more than BMW sold 3 series, then you start to realize what's going on here.

What exactly is going on here? Audi is up 8.2% from last June and BMW is up 24.6% for the same period. Seems like a good ol' @$$ kickin to me. Maybe BMW isn't "flooding the market with niche products" as others suggest. Sure they're introducing some new models but maybe, just maybe, consumers are begining to realize that BMW really is an incredible machine.

[norsairius]

I can deal with the engine downsizing, the new turbo I4 for example, while it doesn't sound good, hauls ass appropriately. Throttle response is also pretty good.

I can deal with the interior material quality dropping a bit, it's never been a huge priority for me and it at least still LOOKS nice, if not better than the E9X interior (to me). I had no issues with it in the loaner 328i I had, I actually preferred it to my car's interior.

I can deal with the softer suspension. The 328i loaner was actually quite comfy and very quiet too but it still handled pretty darn well. If you want an even sportier setup, the M Sport package is there. Otherwise, the softer suspension actually worked better for me since at least 90% of my driving is on crappy urban roads.

I actually like the new styling too. The new cars look great on the outside! I originally wasn't a big fan, but the more I see it, especially in person, the more I like it! I'll admit I made a hasty judgment initially.

What I have issues with the most with is the steering feel. Road and Track sums it up quite well in their comparison between the E90 and F30 (this is from a thread in the E9x forums, a member got a copy of the magazine with the article):
"The new car's electrically assisted power steering is quite good (and, thanks to software updates, will likely get better), but it's not great, and when it occasionally communicates what the chassis is doing, it tells you what just happened. The E90's hydraulic steering, by contrast, tells you what's about to happen. That's an important distinction as you're approaching the limits of a car's suspension: 'Dude you're sideways' is a different thing from 'don't feed in any more throttle, because your rear tires are about to break traction.'"

So while I'm glad BMW is selling a ton of vehicles, I do hope that they are paying attention to the criticism of the steering feel. It's a VERY important part of the EXPERIENCE of driving. The steering wheel should communicate road feel directly to your hands. You use it to point the car where you want to go. Bottom line: it needs to feel right and communicate appropriately. This new electric steering setup just didn't do that for me. Too light and not communicative enough.

I've always wanted a BMW for the EXPERIENCE it delivers, not even necessarily the name. The latest generation of BMWs is a tough sell for me. I'm likely to be in a position to pick up another vehicle around this time next year, but if I'm not going to get the experience I'm hoping to pay for, then I won't be looking at the F3x. I'll be looking at used E9x 3-series or 1-series vehicles.

[300hp]

Originally Posted by JJunkins

What exactly is going on here? Audi is up 8.2% from last June and BMW is up 24.6% for the same period. Seems like a good ol' @$$ kickin to me. Maybe BMW isn't "flooding the market with niche products" as others suggest. Sure they're introducing some new models but maybe, just maybe, consumers are begining to realize that BMW really is an incredible machine.

we are skinning the same cat

[CirrusSR22]

Great June numbers, for sure! But ultimately this is a story of the US economy picking-up.

Other 2013 Year-to-Date sales numbers increases. You can see BMW is not the only one:

Originally Posted by http://www.goodcarbadcar.net/2013/07/usa-auto-sales-brand-rankings-june-2013-ytd.html

Acura up 6% to 76,981
Audi up 15% to 74,277
Buick up 12% to 100,837
BMW up 11% to 140,431
Cadillac up 33% to 83,679
Chevrolet up 6% to 1,015,134
Dodge up 22% to 318,414
Ford up 14% to 1,255,007
Fiat up 4% to 21,612
GMC up 10% to 220,696
Honda up 7% to 668,597
Hyundai up 1% to 361,010
Jaguar up 20% to 7,798
Land Rover up 9% to 22,984
Lexus up 10% to 118,415
Mercedes-Benz up 10% to 151,433
MINI up 1% to 32,356
Nissan up 9% to 572,476
Porsche up 30% to 21,309
Ram up 23% to 175,062
Subaru up 25% to 204,597
Toyota up 6% to 990,376

[hellrotm]

Some time I would like to see numbers broken down into leases and actual purchases. Then compared to other German competition.

[eMvy]

As a BMW enthusiast I hate seeing these posts; BMW CFO is thinking, while the engineers are thinking

[Needsdecaf]

Originally Posted by Never Convicted

So instead, they should focus on 50 know-it-all self appointed pontificators on a message board and never broaden their range to meet competition. But hasn't the "instant sales spike" been going on for years now?

Getting panned by the automotive press too.

Instant was a turn of phrase. You are correct, it is not instant. It has been steady and sustained.

BMW used to be all about the ultimate driving machine. Now they are about the ultimate sales & profit machine. M has been corrupted and whored out. Stock models are soft. Most BMW enthusiasts I speak to say "too soft, what happened to my BMW? Now I'm driving a better Mercedes."

[devinakbv]

Then compared to other German competition.

[300hp]

Originally Posted by CirrusSR22

Great June numbers, for sure! But ultimately this is a story of the US economy picking-up.

Other 2013 Year-to-Date sales numbers increases. You can see BMW is not the only one:

This is a story of domination of the luxury car market by BMW and Mercedes. Period.

[Never Convicted]

Originally Posted by Needsdecaf

Getting panned by the automotive press too.

Instant was a turn of phrase. You are correct, it is not instant. It has been steady and sustained.

BMW used to be all about the ultimate driving machine. Now they are about the ultimate sales & profit machine. M has been corrupted and whored out. Stock models are soft. Most BMW enthusiasts I speak to say "too soft, what happened to my BMW? Now I'm driving a better Mercedes."

If they made a crappy product, sales would decrease and profits would disappear. At the beginning of the year, before new models were being supplied, there were a bunch of squawkers here saying this was the end of BMW. Now sales are through the roof, and you complain they're selling to the wrong people. It's ever been thus. You bought a BMW because it says BMW on it. And NOW you hate the M Sport badges.

And those "enthusiasts" you speak to who have gone to bloated overweight Mercs with slush boxes that don't turn worth a damn may not be such enthusiasts after all.

[vladberca]

BMW F10 LCI might have an improved steering perception
Same case for F32.
The new 2 series will be launched soon. There are some interesting models after the corner

[paulvujb]

The 135i is still around which is the exact same size as the E46